Financial Definition of ODD-LOTTER

What It Is

How It Works

For example, let's assume John wants to buy a share of Disney stock for each year of his son's life as a birthday present for his 12th birthday. John calls his broker with a buy order for 12 shares of Disney stock, which is an odd lot. This makes John an odd-lotter.

Why It Matters

Typically, individual investors are the most likely to be odd-lotters. Because it takes much more work to fill an order for an odd lot, John's broker may charge a higher commission. The broker may have to purchase a round lot (100 shares) and then break the shares up to provide John with his 12 shares.